Criminal Justice

The Criminal Justice program provides a distinctive education which emphasizes a practical approach to understanding crime and deviant behavior, the nature of law and social control, and the organization and management of criminal justice agencies. Instructors bring years of real-life experience to the courses. The academic backgrounds of the faculty are multidisciplinary and all faculty members are currently working or recently retired from the criminal justice field. The program of study leads to a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice and prepares the student for positions in the criminal justice field. We've compiled a list of frequently asked questions that might answer some of yours.

As well, the department has compiled information on age, educational requirements, and earning potential for various city, county, state and federal law enforcement agencies and careers in the Criminal Justice Educational Job Requirements chart.

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for more information on the programs offered or to register for classes.

Faculty

Our faculty is what makes the difference.

Shannon Gonzales

Mrs. Gonzales is an Assistant Deputy Chief Probation Supervisor for San Joaquin County Probation Department and has worked in the probation field since 1995. She is a graduate of CSU Sacramento where she earned her Bachelor of Science Degree in Criminal Justice, Corrections. She earned her Master's Degree in Public Administration from National University in Sacramento in 2001. Ms. Gonzales' experience includes assignments in the Juvenile, Adult and Juvenile Detention Divisions and ranges from supervision, court, report writing, placement, pretrial and day reporting. Ms. Gonzales currently manages the Adult Division for her department. In addition, Ms. Gonzales has been teaching at Humphreys College for many years in the Criminal Justice Department and the STC Core Probation Officer Academy.

Rick Armendariz

Mr. Armendariz is a Lieutenant for the Modesto Police Department where he serves as a Watch Commander and Press Information Officer. He earned his Masters of Arts in Emergency Service Administration from CSU Long Beach and holds certificates from CA POST SLI and IACP Leadership in Police Organizations. He started as a Police Dispatcher in 1993 and has worked in patrol, investigations, Internal Affairs, and various other positions in law enforcement.

Jolene Gonzales

Ms. Gonzales is a Lieutenant for the Modesto Police Department where she serves as a Watch Commander. She earned her Master of Arts Degree in Organizational Leadership from Chapman University. She is currently in CA POST Command College and is slated to attend the FBI National Academy in 2012. She started her career over 25 years ago and has worked in patrol, investigations, Internal Affairs, and training.

Ron Reid

Mr. Reid is an Acting Captain for the Turlock Police Department, where he serves as a Watch Commander. He earned his Master of Science Degree from CSU Long Beach in Emergency Service Administration. He is currently in CA POST Command College. He started his career over 22 years ago and has worked in patrol, investigations, and he currently is the supervisor for SWAT and Hostage Negotiations.

John Bell

Mr. Bell has the most varied work experience amongst all of the Criminal Justice instructors. He worked as a deputy sheriff, police corporal, district attorney investigator, and as a special agent for CA Department of Justice before retiring after 25+ years of service. He earned a Master's Degree from National University.

Steven Van Meter

Steven Van Meter has worked for the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office for 26 years and over 10 years as a Sergeant. He has worked as a supervisor on Patrol, Detectives, Custody (AWP), and in Courts. He earned a Bachelor's degree and a Master's degree in Emergency Services Administration from Long Beach State University. He has over 10 years Custody experience with adult inmates and with juveniles during prior employment at the San Joaquin Juvenile Hall. He served 10 years as a Captain in the United States Army Reserve. He is a POST certified instructor and he taught previously at ITT Technical Institute, Heald College and the Modesto Police Academy. He is a 2007 graduate of the POST Sherman Block Supervisory Leadership Institute (SLI). He has been married for 26 years and has 3 children.

Probation Academy Instructors

David Naumann

Mr. Naumann is a Probation Unit Supervisor in San Joaquin County. He received his Bachelors of Criminal Justice Degree from Louisiana State University. Mr. Naumann currently is an instructor in weaponless defense, firearms, chemical agents and First Aid/CPR. He is also a background and internal affairs investigator and a field training officer.

La Tosha Walden

Ms. Walden has been in Law Enforcement for the past 14 years as a Correctional Officer and is currently a Probation Officer for San Joaquin County. She has a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration with a focus in Marketing and has extensive experience in the private sector.

Marilyn Martin

Mrs. Martin is a Deputy Chief Probation and has worked for the San Joaquin County Probation Department for over 20 years.During her career she has worked in Juvenile Detention, Juvenile Probation, Adult Probation and Probation Administration.She graduated from University of the Pacific with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Black Studies/Sociology and has attended Command College for Probation Administrators.

She teaches the following in the Probation Officer Core Course: Module 5.2 - Family Violence and Module 5.6 - Sex Offender Legal Mandates and Community Management.

Kenn Chiong

Mr. Chiong is a Probation Officer III and has worked for the San Joaquin County Probation Department for over 11 years. He earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Business with an emphasis on Accounting from CSU Fresno and is the Defensive Tactics, Impact Weapons and Firearms instructor for his department.

Juvenile Corrections Academy Instructors

January Siphan

Mr. Siphan is a deputy probation officer with Stanislaus County Probation. He has been with the department since 2001. He has been assigned to the Adult High-Risk Offender Unit since 2007 and specializes in gangs. Mr. Siphan teaches Officer Field Tactics and Building Entry Tactics for this department. Mr. Siphan also teaches Criminal Justice at the Institute of Technology in Modesto. Mr. Siphan received his Bachelor's Degree in Criminal Justice from CSU Stanislaus.

Carla Contente

Ms. Carl Contente is the Deputy Chief Probation Officer over the Juvenile Detention Services Division for the San Joaquin County Probation Department. Ms. Contente's experience includes working as a Correctional Officer for 2 years and working in probation for the last 17 years. She is a graduate of CSU Stanislaus, where she earned her Bachelor's Degree in Criminal Justice.

Stefanie Grijalva

Stefanie Grijalva has worked for the San Joaquin County Probation Department since 2003. She worked as a Juvenile Detention Officer, a Juvenile Detention Unit Supervisor and is currently the Juvenile Detention Training Officer. Ms. Grijalva is an instructor in Cell Extraction, Jireh, Aggression Replacement Training, as well as First Aid/CPR. Ms. Grijalva studied Sociology and Criminal Justice at the University of the Pacific.

Criminal Justice Advisory Group

The Humphreys College Criminal Justice Advisory Board is comprised of law enforcement professionals who advise the College on skills prospective law enforcement recruits need to enter the criminal justice field.